Restaurant
by Gothic-Romantic99
Summary: When Shelly burns the dinner, she and Eric go out to a restaurant. Shelly has something important to tell Eric. Lots of fluff!
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own The Crow

Author's Notes:

1) This story is based off that brief moment in the movie during one of Eric's flashbacks where Shelly is freaking out because she catches the dinner on fire and Eric says "Restaurant" and the two leave smiling.

2) Since I am OCD with my fics I didn't like how this one was written, so it also succumbed to my never-ending revisions. In other words, this is a rewrite.

3) A reader from another story was kind enough to tell me The Crow takes place in Detroit, so I'm going along with that in this story.

* * *

Eric and Shelly strolled down the streets of Detroit, laughing. Eric had his arm around Shelly's shoulder and held her firmly against his body. They were wrapped up in a round of the game they used to play when they first began dating in which Eric tried to kiss Shelly and she'd try her best to avoid it. However, Shelly allowed Eric to win numerous times, although she would never reveal that information to her fiancé.

Eric gave his best smirk before launching his face towards Shelly's mouth. The latter gave a shriek as she dodged him in time. Eric stumbled, his arms grabbing hold of the woman in an attempt to balance himself. His attempts proved futile as he tripped over Shelly's hot pink pumps that matched her dress and fell forward, taking Shelly with him. They landed in the grass. Eric rolled on his side to check if his beloved had received any damage upon their fall. Upon seeing her massive smile, the feature he first fell in love with when he met her his sophomore year in high school, the anxiety in his chest waned. Eric straddled the woman with his palms face down in the dirt on the outside of her arms. Shelly knew she was pinned down, but gave an attempted struggle nonetheless. Her efforts ended in a collection of giggles which prompted Eric to lean forward and plant a kiss on Shelly's lips.

Shelly gave him a sweet smile as well as a gesture of her admitted defeat. Eric stood up then offered his arm to help Shelly to her feet. Shelly immediately dropped her hands to her lower abdomen, rubbing circles upon her belly. Eric watched her with curiosity. She flipped her long locks behind her head then wrapped her arms around Eric. Their noses met momentarily, enjoying the pure bliss of each other's eyes. Shelly was the first to move as she parted her lips to take in Eric's, kissing him passionately. Eric ran his fingers through Shelly's long hair. They were the other's missing half. Eric belonged to Shelly, a fact she knew, one she accepted long ago, a blessing she would never release her hold on.

It had been nearly two months since Eric proposed. Shelly came home from a long day at the office. She only hoped her home would comfort her from endless paperwork she would be forced to sift through again in twelve hours. She opened the door to her apartment and threw her keys in the basket on the table by the door. Sitting next to the wicker basket was a piece of paper decorated to look like parchment. On the paper were landmarks in their apartment with a trail leading up to the attic. She glanced around then looked at the map once more, her eyes studying its every marking. Eric came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. She turned to meet the eyes of the one she loved. So often she pestered him about his delaying in marriage.

"It goes up to the attic," Eric said leading her to the said location.

Shelly gave him a sarcastic smile and followed his lead. She pushed the opening and stepped forward, taking in all the lit candles in the storage space. Shelly gave her boyfriend a large smile before crawling inside the space. In the center of the candles was a velvet cushion on which a box rested. Shelly's slender fingers flipped open the lid and her face lit up upon seeing the gold band inside. Shelly turned back to find Eric beaming. Her eyes fell back on the ring and slid it on her finger. In that moment she understood Eric's intentions. She flung her arms about his body, hugging her beloved tightly. Somehow Shelly managed to break the spell of silence the suave man had the ability to cast upon her. She muttered three words while swaying in his embrace, "I love you."

The memory still remained clear to the bride-to-be. Her hands jittered with the reminder that she had only another four months until her name was changed to his. Shelly Draven, the luckiest woman in the world.

The two walked in each other's embrace on their way to a nearby, favorite restaurant. Eric had already proved himself a hero earlier that night. He walked in just as Shelly gasped as the food went up in flames. She had learned a new recipe on the cooking channel, a Mediterranean dish she thought Eric would enjoy. Shelly turned away for a moment to gather the next ingredients. She glanced over the notes of the recipe, realizing that she had forgotten another step in the preparation. Forgetting what sat on the stove she busied herself with the task at hand.

Her nostrils picked up the burning smell. She turned about, her eyes widened as she saw embers dancing off the side of the pot before turning to ash before their plummet.

"Oh boy," Shelly exclaimed. She looked around for anything she could use to put out the flames. She was unsure if grease had started the fire so that ruled out using water which would only make it spread. Her eyes fell upon the wine bottle, the worst thing to use on a fire. She could have kicked herself for not investing in the fire extinguisher two months prior.

Eric turned the corner. He went into protection mode and grabbed a lid from the cabinet, quickly dropping it on the pot. He switched off the dials then tossed the pot on the backburner. He turned to find Shelly still in a state of shock. She could have burnt the whole apartment down.

"Shelly," Eric said waving his hand in front of her face. "Shelly," he repeated, shaking her shoulder.

The woman stirred, quickly blinking three times. Realization dawned on her and she began to weep. Eric shushed her as he brought her into an embrace.

"Shell, it's alright," Eric said softly.

Shelly slightly shook her head, her hair brushing up under Eric's chin. "I don't know—if you hadn't."

"It's alright, it's over now," Eric stated. He lifted her chin and wiped away a falling tear. He could see the fear, the sorrow, and the embarrassment on his girlfriend's face. He gave her a playful nudge then pressed his cheek against the top of her head, giving her a bright smile. That smile had the power to alleviate any pain in Shelly's heart.

Eric glanced back at the smoldering fire, no longer a threat. He tossed the pot into the sink and allowed the water to rinse out the burnt substance inside. Steam rose from the inside, quickly vanishing into the air.

Eric put his arm around a shuddering Shelly, pulling her close. No one would ever hurt her when he could be there to protect her. That included her own self-doubts.

Eric gave her another reassuring smile. "Restaurant," he said with a chuckle. It did not take long for her to start laughing along with him. The two headed for the door, deciding that they should rather walk instead of drive. They enjoyed walking to close by destinations, especially since it meant they could be in each other's embrace.

After a twenty minute trek, one that could have been much quicker had they not taken the time to play around, they arrived at the restaurant. It was a casual restaurant, but one a notch more upscale than they usually dined at. Eric only wanted to make Shelly forget about her mistake in the kitchen.

Eric held the door open for his beloved. Shelly nodded in return then waited for him to step inside before locking arms with him. She leaned her forehead against his shoulder. The two walked in that formation up to the podium.

The hostess waiting could not help but smile at the scene before her eyes. "How many?" she asked when the momentary stun of admiration wore off, still keeping her smile.

"Two," Eric replied as the hostess grabbed the menus.

"This way," the she said leading them to a table set for two.

Eric and Shelly sat down facing each other. The hostess handed them their menus then stormed off. Shelly opened the black menu to reveal the choices for their dining experience inside.

"You're beautiful," Eric mouthed to Shelly.

Shelly snickered.

"I love you," Eric mouthed.

"I love you more," Shelly mouthed back.

"No, I love you more," Eric mouthed in return.

Their game ended when the waitress arrived.

"Good evening, I'm Gail, I'll be your server," she said. "What would you like to drink? We have a special on champagne." With those words she handed Eric a laminated menu that displayed their wine selection.

"Get whatever you want, dearest," Eric said to Shelly. Gail smiled at Eric's comment.

"No, I'll just have water," Shelly said.

Eric lifted an eyebrow. He barely heard the waitress' question. He glanced up at her, revealing that he would have the same beverage as Shelly.

"Be right back," Gail said and hurried off.

"You love champagne," Eric said.

"Yeah, but I can't drink tonight," Shelly replied.

"You're not driving," Eric joked.

Shelly smiled and sighed. Eric found himself suddenly feeling uneasy. Shelly made weak eyes with her boyfriend then said, "I was trying to find the right time to tell you, but I guess now would be that time." Eric's smile faded as he listened to what his fiancée had to say. "I went to the doctor today," Shelly supplied.

Eric's face changed to a look of horror.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own The Crow.

What's wrong with Shelly? Find out in this chapter.

I'd like to thank Philomina, Mallory, XxxDarkxMaidenxxX, and ThrashMetalQueen for your reviews of the original.

* * *

Eric sat across from Shelly with panic in his eyes. Shelly was oblivious to the concern in her fiance's eyes since she was looking down at her own knuckles. Eric's heart pounded with each passing second. He reached across the table and gripped Shelly's hand in his. Her eyes were forced to meet with his.

"Shelly, what's wrong?" Eric asked.

"Nothing," Shelly replied.

"The doctor," Eric reminded Shelly of her own words.

"I've been sick lately," Shelly replied.

"And you didn't tell me?" Eric asked hysterically. "Were you waiting for the condition to worsen, or—"

"Eric, will you please let me finish?" Shelly interrupted. She paused knowing how Eric could be when he was concerned about something, especially her. It was the main reason she chose to keep silent until now. It was true that she had been vomiting every morning, but wanted to be sure of the case before giving any false news to the one she loved.

"I'm sorry," Eric said at last. "I'm just…"

"Worried, I know," Shelly finished for him. Eric gave her a half-smile of defeat. The woman knew him too well. Shelly took another deep breath. "Eric, if it were something detrimental to my health, I would've told you in no time, but I…even if my suspicions were correct, I wanted to know for sure." Eric listened, despite the betrayal of worry still plastered on his face. "So I went to the doctor and…" Eric's eyes widened waiting for her to finish.

"And?" Eric asked when no answer came right away.

Shelly smiled wide as she revealed, "I'm pregnant."

The concern in Eric's face switched to delight.

"We're...we're going to have a baby?" Eric asked short of breath.

Shelly responded by nodding and laughing.

"This is the best news I've heard since you agreed to marry me," Eric said cupping his hands around hers.

Gail returned with the glasses of water forcing them to part their hold on one another. Eric and Shelly each thanked her as she sat the cup down in front of them.

"Are you ready to order?" Gail asked.

"Sorry, we haven't even looked at the menu," Shelly said laughing. Whether it was brought on upon the strange look they received from their server or from Shelly's own excitement, she neither could say, nor did she care. She wanted the world to know of her fortune. "I found out I'm going to have a baby today," Shelly explained.

"Oh, congratulations!" Gail exclaimed. "How far along?"

"A month," Shelly answered.

"Well, you two take your time, I'll be back in a few minutes for your order" Gail said, patting Shelly on the shoulder. With those words she left to tend to the other customers.

Shelly picked up her menu. She glanced over at Eric whose eyes were solely focused on her.

"What?" Shelly asked grinning.

"I love you," Eric said with a smile.

"I love you more," Shelly said back.

* * *

Now wasn't that just sweet? That's what I love most about the Eric/Shelly relationship, their love is just so pure. In both the movie and the graphic novel there is no doubt how much the two love and adore one another. It just begs for fanfic authors to write fluff. Thanks for reading!


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